


Presentable

by BotchedExperiment



Category: Schitt's Creek
Genre: Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Sick Character, Sickfic, david is very self-conscious
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2020-02-10
Packaged: 2021-02-27 22:47:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22653493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BotchedExperiment/pseuds/BotchedExperiment
Summary: “Awesome. I’ll see you in a half hour?”How dare Patrick think that he could be ready to go out in a half hour on a good day, let alone one where- Oh God, if David looked even half as bad as he felt, he had his work cut out for him.
Relationships: Patrick Brewer/David Rose
Comments: 11
Kudos: 269





	Presentable

**Author's Note:**

> i caved
> 
> Absolutely inspired by that one episode with alexis where i went “what if it was david instead” 

"Does this dress say 'I might like you but like, maybe not'?"

David sat up in his bed, blankets falling off of his shoulders and pooling in his lap. He shook his head the way he often did when he didn't have a true answer to a question. "Ugh, I don't know. Maybe,” he muttered with a wince.

Alexis groaned dramatically. "Okay, David, that's not really helpful. I don't want Ted to think that I'm coming with him to this vet thing because I like him!"

"Um, but you do like him?" His voice raised an octave at the end, but this time died away before he was finished using it.

"Yeah, but I don't want him to know that!"

David sniffled and ran the sleeve of his hoodie under his nose. "Okay honestly, he's  _ Ted,  _ Alexis. He's not going to be reading into anything. And whatever dress you're wearing isn't going to- to…" He fumbled for a tissue and got it to his nose just in time to release a pair of painful sneezes. He groaned as they scraped against his throat. "Oh my God…"

"Eww, David."

"Don't 'ew' me! You think I don't know that this whole situation is  _ 'ew'?! _ " He argued, gesturing wildly with the tissue in-hand at his current state. He hadn't had the energy to go through his whole morning routine or even get out of his pajamas. Not having washed his face or done his hair was definitely affecting his mood. "So yeah, you're overthinking this and Ted isn't going to care what dress you're wearing. But like…" A sigh. "I guess the salmon-y one is a lot nicer for this time of year."

Alexis opened her mouth and looked like she was about to argue before she turned to the other dress draped over the sofa. Her mouth formed a thin line as she gave a reluctant nod of agreement and grabbed it on her way to change for a third time.

David coughed pitifully. Of course he'd wake up sick on his one day off, but then again, it was probably a good thing it happened today. It saved him from having to admit to Patrick that he was sick.

With his luck, though, Patrick would probably show up and try to take care of him. The thought of his loving boyfriend seeing him in this state sent shivers down his spine, and not the good kind.

His family was one thing - they’d all seen him at his lowest points. But Patrick… Patrick was his boyfriend. Their relationship was partially based on their attraction to each other, wasn't it? So if Patrick saw how gross he looked right now…

Yuck. No thank you.

David's phone buzzed and he scrambled through his blankets to find it.

Speak of the devil.

_ Patrick: Good morning. Have a good day <3 _

Ugh. He was so sweet. David was in the middle of groaning when Alexis emerged in the new dress.

"What?" She asked in annoyance.

"Why does my boyfriend have to be so fucking  _ perfect." _

"Okay, I'm going to actually hit you right now."

\-----

David listened to his family leave the room, one by one, until he was left by himself. He’d planned on sleeping off this cold the moment they were gone.

Stupid plan.

He couldn’t get comfortable no matter the position he was in. And of course his nose would start dripping the moment that he thought he  _ was  _ comfortable.  _ Or _ he’d end up coughing, because his lungs couldn’t handle him being horizontal for two fucking minutes.

He whimpered restlessly, throwing the blankets off of himself with a huff. This was the actual worst.

David nearly jumped out of his skin when his phone started to vibrate.

The screen read ‘ _ Patrick’  _ and he knew he was in trouble. He sniffled deeply and cleared his throat to sound as healthy as he possibly could.

“Hellooo?”

_ “Hey, do you wanna meet me at the cafe for lunch?” _

“Oh, sure! Yeah, absolutely I-” His nose fucking  _ itched.  _ He pulled the phone away long enough for him to violently scrub it. “I’d love to.”

_ “Awesome. I’ll see you in a half hour?” _

How dare Patrick think that he could be ready to go out in a half hour on a  _ good  _ day, let alone one where- Oh God, he must look like death. If David looked even half as bad as he felt, he had his work cut out for him.

David was out of bed the minute they said goodbye, ignoring the way his sinuses made his head spin when he stood up too quickly.

Clothes, he needed clean clothes. David chose one of his older, less expensive sweaters that could easily be cleaned if the sleeves suffered an unfortunate fate from the goop currently leaking out of his face. 

Next, he fixed his hair. That probably took the most effort. He skipped his shower that morning so it was greasy and uncooperative, but he made it work.

David took a last look at himself in the mirror and sighed. He still looked tired, his eyes were red and puffy and his nose had a pink tinge to it, but… it was going to have to do. There was no guarantee that Patrick would notice as long as David didn’t draw too much attention to his face.

He made his sniffly walk to the cafe, wishing he’d asked Patrick to pick him up as he started to hack up a lung halfway there from the exertion. He took a moment to catch his breath and wipe his nose before entering.

Patrick was sitting in the furthest booth back and facing away from the door, which gave him a little more time to make himself look healthy on his way there. He scrubbed his nose, cleared his throat, and put on his best “Casual Lunch, Everything is Fine” face.

Patrick’s immediately lit up as David slid into the seat, and his heart kind of melted at the sight of his boyfriend. He didn’t realize how much he missed the slightest bit of affection during his... few hours on his sickbed.

“Hey,” Patrick greeted brightly. “How has your day been?”

“Oh, y’know, relaxing and uneventful.”

“Just how you like it, then?”

David bit back a smile and nodded. “Something like that, yeah.”

Patrick chuckled and reached for David’s hand across the table. And  _ oh,  _ how he desperately wanted to give in... but the thought of how many germs that were probably on his skin right now...

David cleared his throat as he pulled his hand away, and felt his heart fall at the confused look on his boyfriend’s face. He just couldn’t live with himself if he got Patrick sick. David tried to save himself by casually scratching at his face as if that was what he intended all along, but Patrick was still watching him with a raised eyebrow.

“How is  _ your  _ day going, though? A lot of customers?” He asked quickly.

Patrick shrugged. “Enough. It’s been a pretty normal day. Oh! We did get a business card from a couple that wants us to look into selling their baked goods.”

“Definitely something to consider, then.”

“You hate it.”

David released a sigh he didn’t realize he was holding, along with a cough that he quickly had to disguise as a laugh. “I mean...”

Patrick chuckled. “We’ll talk about it later.”

David nodded in agreement. He shuddered, suddenly feeling chilly, and folded his arms to conserve his body heat.

“Do you think it’s cold in here? Twyla must have turned the AC up.”

“I don’t even know if the AC is on. How are you cold?”

With one look, David realized Patrick had his sleeves pulled up and a sheen of sweat on his face. So apparently he shouldn’t be cold, which meant a fever, which was a  _ little _ unnerving. He could freak out about it when lunch was over and he was back at home.

All he could think to say was “Oh,” and shrug as casually as possible. Patrick looked like he was about to question his weirdness, but to David’s relief, he thought against it and took a sip of his coffee instead. 

He was in the clear.

“Hey David!” Twyla chimed. “How’re you feeling? Alexis said you were home sick today.”

_ Motherfu- _

“Oh I’m,” he cleared his voice of the roughness and winced when all that did was hurt his sore throat. “I’m feeling much better now. It was just one of those uh, four-hour bugs.” He tried very hard not to glance at his boyfriend who was now in his peripheral looking straight at him.

Twyla scrunched her nose in thought. “Mmm, is that a thing?”

A scoff. “Yeah, totally. It’s totally a thing.”

She didn’t look convinced, but she shrugged. “Well, I think we have a tea that might make you feel better if you’re interested. It’s really good for colds!”

David cleared his throat agai-  _ ow, fuck,  _ he had to stop doing that. “Thanks, Twy.”

She smiled. “Mhm! So what else can I get you two?”

The two of them ordered their food, and of course Twyla walked off with the smile of someone who was way too happy for a full-time waitress.

David shrunk under Patrick’s gaze. He was prepared for the lecture about not communicating or something. Instead, Patrick looked concerned.

“I wouldn’t have dragged you over here if I knew you were sick,” he said, so unbelievably soft. He chuckled. “You could have said something!”

David huffed out a halfhearted laugh and tried to pretend like he wasn’t freezing to death. “I wanted to see you, though, so I’m here. It’s nothing anyway, just a really,  _ really _ annoying c- cold...” The itch in his nose had returned with vengeance. “Jesus...” David muttered before pulling his arm over his face in time to cover the sneeze.

There was a napkin hanging in front of his face as he looked up, as well as his boyfriend with an annoyingly-sympathetic expression.

"Bless you."

"I'm  _ fine,"  _ He said when the whole debacle was done with, pressing the napkin to his nose.

Patrick folded his arms on the table and leaned forward. "I don't get you. You whine about every single headache and leg cramp, but you have a full-blown cold and you’re just 'fine'?"

"I'm sorry, do I have to give you every detail of my health?"

"Of course not." Patrick shrugged and took another sip of his coffee. "Doesn't bother me. I'm just not used to you being casual about something like this. Or… about anything."

Lacking a proper response, David just made a 'hm' sound and found a coffee stain on the table to be rather interesting. 

The sandwich that David usually ordered was difficult to swallow. He gave up on it after the third bite and decided to switch to tea. Twyla was right, it did help. His sinuses felt clearer and it soothed his throat. 

This was his least favorite part about being sick, however. Not being able to eat for one reason or another. He didn't do well with skipping meals. He was prone to “hangriness”, as Alexis often called it.

He was mid-sip when he realized Patrick was watching him. "What?" he muttered with a sheepish smile.

"You're not eating? Are you  _ sure _ you're okay?"

"Yes, yes, I'm completely okay. Just don't feel like eating right now. Had a… big breakfast." He had one-fourth of a cinnamon bun.

Patrick saw right through him. David squirmed under his scrutiny. "You feel really terrible, huh?"

Apparently that was all David needed to let down his thinly-veiled misery. "My throat hurts so much," he whined.

"Okay, well we can try to fix that," Patrick said softly. He reached for David's hand again, and this time David couldn’t bring himself to pull away. He’d remind Patrick to wash his hands later.

"…And I can't breathe through my nose. And I _ might  _ have a fever."

Patrick smiled and nodded. "I'll drive you back to the motel, we'll pick some stuff up on the way to help you feel better. How’s that sound?”

He should probably be getting back to the store, David thought. Patrick was really just here to have a quick lunch with him, not take care of his dying boyfriend. And yet, David found that his mood immediately lifted at those words.

“That sounds amazing,” David admitted.

\-----

David leaned into Patrick's cool touch on his forehead.

"I think you were right about that fever. Here," He reached into the pharmacy bag and handed David a bottle of tylenol. "This should help."

David smiled. His bed was a mess of gross tissues and tangled blankets, and a part of him was terrified that something like this would somehow be the last straw of their relationship. But no, Patrick was too sweet and caring and precious. David didn't deserve any of it, but he'd take it.

"Thank you," David croaked. His voice was starting to go for good.

"Was there a reason you didn't tell me?" Patrick asked in that genuinely curious voice that tricked you into answering immediately.

David huffed dramatically. "Well- Patrick! I'm  _ disgusting _ !" He said, as if Patrick should know this already. It was obvious! "I'm so gross right now, and I'm snotty and germy and I couldn’t let you see me like this when-"

Patrick kissed him.

He fucking  _ kissed  _ him.

David splayed a hand on his chest and pushed him away as quickly as he could. 

"What are you doing?!"

"Proving to you that you're not gross."

"That's just not true. Oh my God, I'm dating a crazy person."

Patrick leaned in again, and this time David didn't resist as their lips made contact.

"You're going to regret this when you catch it," he mumbled.

A shrug. "Small price to pay."


End file.
